The Tides Of #MeToo Are Stirring The Winds Of Change In India & There's No Backing Down Now

Over a year has gone by since Hollywood biggie Harvey Weinstein was exposed by The New York Times, a monumental day that marked the real beginning of the #MeToo movement. All these women, these survivors have been raising their voices loud and clear - they are ready to be heard.

The #MeToo movement's arrival in India earlier this October, has followed in the same footsteps. The uprising has since shaken up our nonchalant society, that has long subdued and ignored the protests of sexual abuse and harassment survivors. The voices are finally being heard in our homeland.

Don't believe us? You think the movement hasn't caused a stir worth acknowledging and looking out for? Well, to such naysayers, we bring these proofs.

A recent report published by The Indian Express shows that the #MeToo tweets in India in the month of October has exceeded US' monthly high. That is, between September 20th and October 19th, 1.2 million #MeToo tweets have come out of India.

The report also states that “Twitter saw more #MeToo tweets from India at the month ending October 19 than any single month in the US over the past year”.

With India's October #MeToo tweets exceeding US' monthly high, it evidently seems that Indian women have finally launched a movement that will not die anytime soon, and surely not without bringing about a change.

The uproar has already managed to cause a seismic shift in the country's gender politics and altered the status-quo across the nation in varying degrees.

Showing her support towards Tanushree, and placing her faith in the movement's inherent power, Freida Pinto wrote in a Instagram post, "What you have done is monumental and important and it has to shake the very core of a nation and an ideology that for too long has gotten away with heinous crimes against women and where the ugliness of misogyny has dominated the rights and suppressed any voice that has dared to speak up."

It seems this time women have sworn to not stop until the culprits are brought to justice, until the power structures are dismantled, and the laws that are meant to protect the wellbeing of the country's citizens, are not bent to serve the powerful and mighty.

Actor Richa Chadha seems to be highlighting this aspect of the movement when she told PTI that, "The #MeToo movement isn't going away any time soon. It is here to stay. It is time to make men accountable for their actions and the trauma that is caused to the victims, men or women”.

Regardless of what the naysayers and fake male feminists try to believe, the winds of change are blowing stronger than ever amidst #MeToo solidarity.

The pushback has forced prominent accused such as MJ Akbar, Prashant Jha, Sajid Khan and many others to step down from their positions of power, and step away from their projects and positions, under the public glare.

Numerous celebrities, journalists and politicians have also come forward to support the survivors who have spoken up and condemned the culprits. Be it Farhan Akhtar, Hansal Mehta, Priyanka Chopra, or Sandhya Menon and Maneka Gandhi, they have all come in support of the movement.

Anurag Kashyap and Akshay Kumar have also condemned and stepped away from projects they had undertaken with Vikas Bahl and Sajid Khan respectively.

However, socio-political activist Chanda Asani feels that the movement needs to turn more inclusive, where it can move beyond social media and include the voices of people working on the ground. She further says that "On sexual harassment, I think we are trying to put ourselves in the same rut patriarchy has put us in. It's not just about the body - woman or man's. The power structures need to change”.

We hope the tides of #MeToo leave behind a better tomorrow in its wake, not only for the survivors to heal, but for the future generations to live freely in.